Meal service will begin on July 20 and run through Aug. 14 at the following locations:
B.O.B.S., 1420 N. 3rd St., 6:30-7:15 a.m., dine-in only. Sack lunch provided at the breakfast.
City Light Community Ministries, 1441 N. 4th St., 11 a.m.-12:30 p.m. Dine-in (Monday, Wednesday, Friday). 
Love & Care Ministries, 233 Fannin St., 7-8:30 a.m., dine-in; 11:30 a.m.-1 p.m., dine-in
Salvation Army, 1726 Butternut St., 5 p.m. dine-in; 6:30 a.m. Saturday and Sunday, dine-in.
Meals will be served at the following locations July 27-Aug. 14:
This year’s schedule follows, with service July 27-Aug. 14. AISD ends its free meals program on July 20. 
Abilene WIC Office, 850 N. 6th St., 11:30 a.m.-12:30 p.m.
Mockingbird (former library parking lot, 1326 N. Mockingbird Lane, 11:30 a.m.-12:30 p.m.
Grace Fellowship, 910 Cypress St., 12-12:45 p.m.
Southern Hills Church of Christ, 3666 Buffalo Gap Road, 12-1 p.m. (curbside and dine-in)
Abilene Housing Authority, 4398 N. 7th St., 12-1 p.m.
Mann STEAM Academy, 2545 Mimosa Drive, 12-12:45 p.m.

By Loretta Fulton

“I’m the one that said ‘yes.’”

Becky Almanza wasn’t boasting, just answering a question about the beginnings of a free summer meals feeding program for school kids. 

The program fills the gap between when the Abilene Independent School District ends its summer feeding program and the beginning of the new school year. 

Becky Almanza

Almanza, community minister at Highland Church of Christ, said “yes” after a visit from representatives of a similar program in San Angelo. That one was started in partnership with the Baylor Collaborative on Hunger and Poverty, which was founded in 2009 at Baylor University. 

The local program is in conjunction with the Abilene Big Country Hunger Coalition (ABCHC). For the past four years, the local program also has provided meals for one week during winter break and one week during spring break.

Most of the meals are served curbside, which began with COVID-19 in March 2020. Before that, people came inside at sat at tables with one another. 

“Our goal was to try to develop relationships,” Almanza said.

Originally, the program was based at the Highland Church of Christ Food Pantry. But it has now spread to various locations across town, with an emphasis on the 79603 Zip Code area served by Mann STEAM Academy and Ortiz Elementary School, with a large population of low-income families.

“That’s where we’re concentrated,” Almanza said. 

Photo from the Abilene Big Country Hunger Coalition website.

Most of the meal preparation and cooking is done at Highland Church of Christ and University Church of Christ. Southern Hills Church of Christ uses its own volunteers to prepare and distribute meals at the church. 

Several community partners are included in the summer feeding program, which is funded by private donations, grants, and church budgets. Funding goes through the local Hunger Coalition. 

Little Caesars helps provide some of the pizzas on Fridays, and the coalition purchases the rest from Little Caesars.  On the first Monday, Chick-Fil-A provides breaded chicken. Other restaurants freeze their leftovers and donate to the program.

“Anything we can get from restaurants, we utilize,” Almanza said.

Depending on funding and the number of volunteers, the program may expand to more sites in the future, Almanza said. For now, she is feeling blessed with what she has.

“We’ve been fortunate that we’ve been able to have a program every summer,” she said. 

Loretta Fulton is creator and editor of Spirit of Abilene